Christy Danielson, strategic procurement category manager, AC (agency contractor) labor at Hewlett Packard Enterprises, has been with the company through mergers, acquisitions and program changes. “I started out as an agency contractor,” she says, “and now I’m the global subject matter expert in the program — it’s exciting.”

About 18 months ago, Danielson implemented the company’s AC Plus Program, a flexible hybrid model that enables HPE to ensure proper classification of contractors from a group of critical higher-volume suppliers that require special conditions, terms and requirements beyond what HPE uses with most of its suppliers. AC Plus is now being expanded to other countries, locations and business units within the organization.

One of the things Danielson is most proud of is the HPE crisis management program. She and her team support global suppliers and workers impacted by natural disasters and in war zones. Recently, she worked to provide aid in Ukraine. “We acquired a company that had contingent workers there, and it was a dire situation,” she explains. With the CEO’s blessing, Danielson’s program extended employee-level support to those contingent workers. She recounts, “I was on a call with a supplier in Ukraine who apologized for the noise” — the supplier was taking shelter in a subway station. “We were able to help her team that was supporting HPE get away from the danger and find food, water and shelter.”